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Wednesday, October 16, 2013

When you barbecue as much as I do, you
end up with some wonderful problems, such as having extra BBQ brisket
or smoked pork hanging out in your fridge. This was the case when my
wife and I were trying to come up with an appetizer for a friend's
birthday back in April.

We came across some potsticker wrappers
at the store. I had just smoked a spicy beef brisket the night
before. Boom – inspiration hit. It was one of those “you got
your chocolate in my peanut butter” kind of moments. We came up
with an idea for BBQ beef brisket potstickers. I'm not sure what you
would call this. Redneck fusion? Hillbilly haute cuisine?

I had never formed potstickers before
so I consulted the same person who taught me how to prep eggrolls –
Jaden Hair. The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook has a step by step process for
fancier looking gyoza and Healthy Asian Cooking has the same for a
simpler version. I used the fancy version.

We also used Jaden's method for cooking
the potstickers but the ingredients were more BBQ/Southwest oriented.

Mix together the first seven
ingredients and just enough au jus to get the mixture damp, 1 – 2
Tbsp. Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper if
needed.

Mix together the cornstarch and
water.

Place a heaping teaspoon of the
beef mix in the center of a potsticker wrapper. Wet the edges using
the cornstarch mix and seal according to Jaden's instructions
[insert link]. Repeat with the remaining wrappers.

Preheat a pan skillet over medium
high heat and add the oil. Add the potstickers and cook until the
bottoms are crispy brown, about 2-3 minutes.

Add the water, immediately cover,
and steam for 3-4 minutes.

Remove cover and cook until the
water evaporates.

Serve with some of the remaining
au jus ladled around the pot stickers.

Substitution ideas:

For the au jus – simmer 1 ½ cups
water and 1 tsp beef base until reduced to 1 cup. Season with
salt/pepper.

For the brisket – use leftover roast
beef or pot roast and increase the smoky BBQ sauce to 2 Tbsp.

For the fire roasted jalapeno – use
some canned green chiles

Smoky brisket on the grill. You could just buy some at your local BBQ shack or even use leftover roast beef.

Don't overfill the potstickers or they will be harder for form correctly.

The cute little pleats were easier than I expected.

If you can't find the round wrappers, you can use the square ones instead. Moisten all 4 sides, pull up the 4 corners, and pinch the edges sealed like this.

You can use the au jus straight or spice it up with cilantro, red pepper flakes, or whatever you like.

These were an instant hit! They looked
like regular potstickers but the smoky beef, rich au jus, and mildly
spicy veggies threw a delicious curve ball of BBQ flavor.

My gosh, what a fabulous idea and gorgeous to look out. I'm not sure if I mentioned this before but I'm pretty sure my husband would leave me for you! haha. You're great at what you do, and take such time with your food.